Nalini Malani

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Nalini Malani
Nalini Malani in documenta 13.jpg
Nalini Malani, In Search of Vanished Blood, Documenta 13 (2012).
Born1946 (age 77–78)
Karachi, British India
NationalityIndian
EducationSir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art Bombay, 1964-69
Known forPaintings, Video art, Installations, Theatre
AwardsFukuoka Arts and Culture Prize, 2013. Joan Miro Prize, 2019
Websitenalinimalani.com

Nalini Malani (born 1946) is a contemporary Indian artist. She has worked primarily in painting and drawing.[citation needed] Her work has been shown at museums including the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.[1]

Early life and education[edit]

Born in Karachi, British India (now Pakistan) in 1946,[2] Malani's family sought refuge in India during the Partition of India.[3] They moved to Kolkata, shortly before partition and relocated to Mumbai in 1958.[4] Her family's experience of leaving behind their home and becoming refugees deeply informs Malani's artworks.[5]

Malani studied Fine Arts in Mumbai[6] and obtained a Diploma in Fine Arts from Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art in 1969.[citation needed] During this period, she had a studio in the Bhulabhai Memorial Institute, Bombay, where artists, musicians, dancers and theater persons worked individually and collectively.[citation needed] It was here that she had the opportunity to meet and collaborate with artists from allied forms of artistic practice like theatre.[5] She received a scholarship from the French Government to study fine arts in Paris from 1970 to 1972. She was also a recipient of the Art Fellowship from the Government of India from 1984 to 1989.

Career[edit]

After her graduation, she spent a few years working with photography and film.[7] The themes she explored during this period dealt with the turbulent time that India was experiencing politically and socially, as well the deepening literacy of moving image by its population.[8][7] In the initial part of her career, Malani mostly focussed on paintings - acrylic on canvas & watercolour on paper. She produced a realistic socially based portrayal of Contemporary India.[9] She continued to explore techniques such as the reverse painting method (taught to her in the late-80s by Bhupen Khakhar), which she would recurrently use in her future work. She was disappointed with the lack of acknowledgement that women artists had to face in India and resolved to bring them together for a group show to promote the sense of solidarity.[10] In 1985, she curated the first exhibition of Indian female artists, in Delhi. This led to a series of travelling exhibitions that were taken to public spaces as an attempt to go beyond the elitist atmosphere of the art gallery.[10]

The sectarian violence that hit India in the early 1990s after the demolition of Babri Masjid triggered a sudden shift in her artwork.[9] The renewed religious conflict that had proven to be recurring (bringing back memories of the Partition) pushed her artistic endeavours past the boundaries of the surface and into space.[11] Her earlier foray into performance art and her keen interest in Literature brought new dimensions to her art. She is often counted amongst the earliest to transition from traditional painting to new media work.[6]

In 2013, she became the first Asian woman to receive the Arts & Culture Fukuoka Prize for her "consistent focus on such daring contemporary and universal themes as religious conflict, war, oppression of women and environmental destruction."[11]

Works[edit]

For two-dimensional works, she uses both oil paintings and watercolors. Her other inspirations are her visions from the realm of memory, myth and desire. The rapid brush style evokes dreams and fantasies.[12] Malani's video and installation work allowed her to shift from strictly real space to a combination of real space and virtual space, moving away from strictly object-based work. Her video work often references divisions, gender, and cyborgs.[12] Malani roots her identity as female and as Indian, and her work might be understood as a way for her identity to confront the rest of the world.[13] She often references Greek and Hindu mythology in her work. The characters of 'destroyed women' like Medea, Cassandra and Sita feature often in her narrative.[6] Her multifaceted oeuvre can be broadly classified under two categories; Her experiments with visual media and the moving image like Utopia (1969-1976), Mother India (2005), In Search of Vanished Blood (2012); Her ephemeral and in-situ works such as City of Desires (1992), Medea as Mutant (1993/2014), The Tables have turned (2008). Although her work talks of violence and conflict, her main intent is collective catharsis.[14]

Unity in Diversity (2003)[edit]

Malani's 2003 video play, Unity in Diversity, is based on the renowned 19th century Indian painter Raja Ravi Varma's Galaxy of Musicians, with the overt theme of nationalistic unity displayed through the garb of eleven musicians from different parts of India seemingly playing in harmony. Malani makes a statement on this idealised version of unity by incorporating later histories of violence into that image.[15]

Mother India (2005)[edit]

The video installation was inspired by an essay by the sociologist Veena Das titled "Language and Body: Transactions in the Construction of Pain".[citation needed] It is a synchronised five screen wall-to-wall projection combines archival footage with poetic and painterly image to tell the story of how Indian Nationalism was built using the bodies of women as metaphors for the nation. The work speaks of women as "mutant, de-gendered and violated beyond imagination."[citation needed] The Partition of India and the Gujarat Riots of 2002 are the central events that are referenced in this installation,[16] as there was a sharp increase in the violation of women in these periods.[17]

In Search of Vanished Blood (2012)[edit]

This installation which was first produced for the 13th edition of Documenta consists of five larger rotating Mylar cylinders (metaphorically referring to Buddhist prayer wheels[18])reverse painted with images of soldiers, animals, gods and guns.[17] The shadow play caused by this rotation tells the story of senseless bloodshed especially narrating the story of India since the partition and highlighting the plight of the dispossessed/tribal communities whose lives are drastically affected by developmental decisions made by the government.[10]

Exhibitions[edit]

Photograph of artwork, The Rebellion of the Dead by Nalini Malani, 2017
Nalini Malani, The Rebellion of the Dead, 2017

Reception[edit]

Awards[edit]

  • 1970-72: French Government Scholarship for Fine Arts Study in Paris
  • 2010: Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, San Francisco Art Institute, USA
  • 2013: Fukuoka Arts and Culture Prize for Contemporary Art, Fukuoka, Japan[citation needed]
  • 2014: St. Moritz Art Masters Lifetime Achievement Award, St. Moritz, Switzerland[19]
  • 2016: Asia Arts Game Changer, Asia Society, Hong Kong
  • 2019: Joan Miró Prize, Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain[20]

Fellowships[edit]

Residencies[edit]

  • 1988: Kasauli Art Centre, Kasauli, India
  • 1999: Lasalle-SIA, Singapore
  • 1999/2000 Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan[22]
  • 2003: Civitella Ranieri, Umbertide, Italy[23]
  • 2005: Lucas Art Residencies, Montalvo, California, USA[24]

Museum collections[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ "Malani, Nalini | Biography". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  2. ↑ Phaidon Editors (2019). Great women artists. Phaidon Press. p. 257. ISBN 978-0714878775. {{cite book}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
  3. ↑ Sharma, Meara; Peck, Henry (7 March 2013). "A Conversation With: Video Artist Nalini Malani". The New York Times.
  4. ↑ Juncosa, Enrique; Malani, Nalini; McEvilley, Thomas; Pijnappel, Johan; Sambrani, Chaitanya (2007). Nalini Malani. Dublin: Irish Museum of Modern Art. ISBN 978-8881586448.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Social engagement has always been part of my art'". The Indian Express. 7 January 2018. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Seervai, Shanoor. "A Retrospective of the Works of Nalini Malani Who Paints in Reverse". Wall Street Journal.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Cassandra Naji. "Indian artist Nalini Malani talks myth, metaphor and women – interview | Art Radar". Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  8. ↑ Seervai, Shanoor (10 October 2014). "A Retrospective of the Works of Nalini Malani Who Paints in Reverse". WSJ. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 McEvilley, Thomas (4 June 2009). "Nalini Malani: Postmodern Cassandra". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 dmovies.net (13 May 2015), Nalini Malani, retrieved 6 April 2019
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Mallonee, Laura C. "Nalini Malani on Her Career and Bringing Her Documenta 13 Shadow Play". Observer.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Rajadhyaksha, Ashish (2003). "Spilling Out: Nalini Malani's Recent Video Installations". Third Text. 17 (1). doi:10.1080/09528820309657. S2CID 219622972. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  13. ↑ McEvilley, Thomas (June 2009). "Nalini Malani: Postmodern Cassandra". Brooklyn Rail.
  14. ↑ Vial Kayser, Christine (2015). "Nalini Malani, a Global Storyteller". Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  15. ↑ Turner, Webb, Caroline, Jen (2016). Art and Human Rights: Contemporary Asian contexts. England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780719099571.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ↑ "Disembodied Voices | Nalini Malani: Mother India | Art Gallery of New South Wales | Sydney". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Nalini Malani Turns to a Greek Myth to Retell Indian Tragedies". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  18. ↑ "The Oracle and the Artist". The Indian Quarterly – A Literary & Cultural Magazine. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  19. ↑ "Nalini Malani St. Moritz Art Masters Award 2014 / ArtReview". artreview.com. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  20. ↑ Miró, Fundació Joan. "Nalini Malani | Joan Miró Prize". Fundació Joan Miró. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  21. ↑ "Artist Nalini Malani receives the first National Gallery Contemporary Fellowship with Art Fund | Press releases | National Gallery, London". www.nationalgallery.org.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  22. ↑ "Fukuoka Asian Art Museum". faam.city.fukuoka.lg.jp. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  23. ↑ "Civitellians Featured in 'The Artist Project'". Civitella Ranieri. 2 January 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  24. ↑ "Montalvo Arts Center | Residencies | Past Fellows". montalvoarts.org. Retrieved 30 April 2019.

Further reading[edit]

  • Nalini Malani: Paintings and Photograms, Pundole Art Gallery, Bombay 1970
  • Nalini Malani, Pundole Art Gallery, Bombay 1973 (text by A. Jussawalla).
  • Nalini Malani, Pundole Art Gallery, Bombay 1979 (interview by Y. Dalmia).
  • Nalini Malani, Art Heritage, New Delhi 1980 (text by G. Kapur).
  • Nalini Malani, Pundole Art Gallery, Bombay 1984 (text by A. Sinha).
  • Nalini Malani, Pundole Art Gallery, Bombay 1986 (text by P. Kurien).
  • Nalini Malani, Gallery 7, Bombay 1990 (text by S. Gokhale).
  • Nalini Malani, Gallery Chemould, Bombay 1991 (with text by the artist)
  • Nalini Malani, Hieroglyph’s & Other Works, Painted Books, Installation, Sakshi Gallery, Madras 1992 (text by A. Rajadhyaksha).
  • Nalini Malani: Bloodlines, Artist’s Laboratory, Gallery Chemould, Bombay 1995 (with text by the artist).
  • Nalini Malani: Containers ’96: Art Across the Oceans, Copenhagen Cultural Capital Foundation, Copenhagen 1996 (interview by K. Kapoor).
  • Nalini Malani: Medeaprojekt, edited by K. Kapoor and A. Desai, Max Mueller Bhavan, Bombay 1997 (texts by K. Kapoor, C. Sambrani, A. Rajadhyaksha, A. Samarth, interview by S. Gokhale).
  • Nalini Malani: Hamletmachine, edited by J. Matsuura, M. Kamachi, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka 2000 (with text by the artist).
  • Nalini Malani: Stories Retold, Bose Pacia, New York 2004 (texts by di R. Devenport, C. Sambrani).
  • Nalini Malani: Living in Alice Time, Sakshi Gallery, Bombay 2006 (texts by N. Adajania, S. Bean).
  • Nalini Malani, edited by S. Kissáne, J. Pijnappel, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Charta, Milan 2007 (texts by E. Juncosa, T. McEvilley, C. Sambrani, interview by J. Pijnappel, with texts by the artist).
  • Nalini Malani: Listening to the Shades, edited by J. Pijnappel, Arario Gallery, New York, Charta, Milan 2008 (text by R. Storr, with text by the artist).
  • Nalini Malani: Splitting the Other, edited by B. Fibicher, Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Lausanne, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2010 (texts by B. Fibicher, W. Chadwick, D. von Drahten, A. Huyssen)
  • Nalini Malani: In Search of Vanished Blood, edited by Z. Colah, J. Pijnappel, dOCUMENTA (13), Kassel, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2012 (texts by A. Huyssen, J. Pijnappel, N. Malani in conversation with C. Christov-Bakargiev, N. Malani in conversation with A. Appadurai).
  • Nalini Malani: WOMANTIME, Art Musings, Bombay 2013 (text by A. Doshi).
  • Nalini Malani & Arjun Appadurai: The Morality of Refusal, edited by K. Sauerlander, dOCUMENTA (13), Kassel, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2012 (text by A. Appadurai).
  • Nalini Malani, Artist File 2013, edited by O. Fukunaga, National Art Centre, Tokyo 2013 (text by Y. Motohashi).
  • William Kentridge-Nalini Malani: The Shadow play as Medium of Memory, edited by C. Gute, Galerie Lelong, New York, Charta, Milan 2013 (text by A. Huyssen).
  • Nalini Malani: Cassandra’s Gift, edited by V. Shivadas, Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi 2014 (text by V. Shivadas).
  • Nalini Malani: You can’t hold Acid in a Paper Bag (Retrospective 1969-2014), edited L. Betting, S. Bhatt, J. Pijnappel, Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, New Delhi 2015 (texts by R. Karode, S. Jhaveri, C. Sambrani, A. Rajadhyaksha, R. Devenport, D. von Drathen. - interview by S. Jhaveri).
  • M. Bal, In Medias Res: Inside Nalini Malani’s Shadow Plays, edited by K. Tengbergen-Moyes, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2016.
  • Nalini Malani: The Rebellion of the Dead, Part I 1969-2018, edited by S. Duplaix, Centre Georges Pompidou, Museé national d’art modern, Paris, Éditions du Centre Pompidou, Paris, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2017 (texts by S. Duplaix, M. Bal, J. Pijnappel, interview by S. Duplaix).
  • Nalini Malani: The Rebellion of the Dead, Part II 1969-2018, edited by M. Beccaria, Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Rivoli, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern 2018 (texts by C. Christov-Bakargiev, M. Bal, M. Beccaria, L. Monnet, interview by M. Beccaria).
  • Nalini Malani: Can You Hear Me?, edited by Johan Pijnappel, Max Mueller Bhavan, Mumbai 2019 (with text by the artist).
  • Nalini Malani: Can You Hear Me?, edited by Emily Butler, Whitechapel Gallery, London 2020 (texts Iwona Blazwick, Emily Butler, with text by the artist).

External links[edit]

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